In the online arena, I'm gaining knowledge and insight on a daily basis. I have some new JavaScript code I'm using for a cross-fading slide show effect on the website I'm working on (First Prize Pet Products). I decided to integrate the code into the opening page of my portfolio site, so now there are two rotating slide shows that display more of my design samples on the first page (not just the publication design, but brochures, labels and even set design and interior design work).
Save for a couple of pieces of artwork, the First Prize Pet Products website is ready to go up and get tested. I may have a sticky time getting the form on the site to connect correctly and return the form information, but I won't know for sure until I've actually launched the site. Luckily, not a lot of people use the form, so I'll have some time for testing.
This weekend was a good one: we got the recycling done on Saturday and got hooked on the series "Heroes" via Netflix. On Sunday we cleaned out a good part of the garage and watched a couple old movies ("My Man Godfrey" and "Sunset Boulevard").
The weirdest thing to happen, and one that I found most compelling, is the knocking over of the puzzle box. About eight or nine years ago, my Aunt Kit gave it to me as a Christmas present. It's a clear plastic box with a maze inside and a single steel ball. Locked within the maze is a $10 bill: complete the maze and the cash pops out.Over the last eight or nine years, I've given the puzzle a go every now and then, always being very frustrated (not being very good at those kinds of puzzles), eventually shelving it only to take a crack at it a few months later. I always told myself that if things got really bad, I could always take a hammer to it and retrieve the cash. Most recently it was sitting on the filing cabinet next to my desk in the office.
Now you must understand our cat rules of the house. The first, and major, rule is that anything on the floor is available as a toy. Our younger cat, Patty, has expanded on this rule, so that anything she can knock onto the floor becomes a toy. This is especially valuable to her in the office, with rubber bands, paper clips and other small objects out in the open.
Thursday evening we were downstairs in the living room and heard a thump from upstairs in the office. When I went up to check it out, I found the puzzle on the floor, Patty ready to run for her life, and the tray with the $10 bill open and protruding from the puzzle.
I yelled, "Oh, my God!" and started to laugh. Patty barreled needlessly for cover. And it got me to thinking.
I had spent the last eight years in a halfhearted attempt to solve that puzzle and, unbeknownst to me, it was only one move away from solution. When Patty knocked it to the floor, the ball bounced into its final position and the solution presented itself. I plucked the $10 out of its slot because it was obviously time to spend it.
My first impulse was to call Aunt Kit and tell her about this amazing happening, but she died about a year and a half ago. I think it was the first time I felt sad about not having her with us without grieving.
So there's lots to glean from this event:
1. No matter how impossible a problem seems, if you continue to work toward a solution, you will succeed.
2. If you have a problem that you don't have a knack for solving, put it out there and share it with others; somebody with the knack will come up with a solution when you least expect it.
3. This is why we truly miss those who die: we can no longer share these priceless moments of which they were an integral part.
4. Coincidence, serendipity, dumb luck and delight are things that cannot be scheduled; make room for them when they arrive.
5. Patience is not a virtue, it is a vital life skill.
As for my ongoing job search, I shall continue to be diligent, keep putting out the resumes, keeping at the web design. At some point, God will knock that puzzle off my shelf and that long-desired career move will pop open for the plucking.
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